Darwin/NT coffee

Eeek, there are no previous posts about Darwin or the NT in this section?
Is there no where in this state which does palatable coffee?
I am happy enough making my own most of the time, but I still enjoy going "out" for coffee at times.

Re: Darwin/NT coffee

Well I tried Roma bar, and I have to say... not impressed.

I didnt see (or hear) the [s]barista[/s] coffee maker grind coffee once in the whole time I was there, and when leaving noticed that the doser on the grinder was almost completely full. Considering they made 3 coffees the entire time i was in there it was probably ground for the rest of the week.

I tried a latte as I dont tend to trust new places with a black coffee first up, and as I needed 3 (I normally take 0) sugars to be able to drink it, I wont be rushing back.

Re: Darwin/NT coffee

Hmmm. too many cafes are hit and miss depending on who is on the machine.

The other thing to try is going to one of the regular markets they have up there in parap, nightcliff and maybe mindle beach. There used to be a place selling decent coffees and brown beans at the markets. The markets are worth a look anyway.

Re: Darwin/NT coffee

Cheers, road out to the markets this weekend, and saw a guy who was selling roasted beans at Rapid Creek market.
BTW love the markets - Rustys in Cairns could learn a lot about local producers selling local products.

Re: Darwin/NT coffee

Ok, 4 days in Darwin and all the coffee was crap. Just flew home this morning and pulled a nice latte out of the Izzo Lever and now just roasted a batch of the Mexico Yeni Navan Typica and pulled myself a nice double espresso of Peru Ceja de Selva Estate to confirm my impressions of Darwin - and of course it was nectar of the gods!

So with out a trace of modesty, I confirm the best coffee in the NT is at Ricks Bar & Grill!

Re: Darwin/NT coffee

Ahh, I see you would be Rick then?
Not had the chance to get to Nhulunbuy but if I do i will give you fair warning.
I am learning that apartment living is not very conducive towards home roasting so am living in a coffee desert for the moment.

I should make it out to Ricks one day... What does it cost for a return ticket? Maybe we could have an NT snobs meet & greet out there? Or maybe it would be cheaper to get galumay in here

linnaen are you still in the NT?

I've moved into the city for work and the coffee is pretty dreadful. Thanks to Andy I brew my own. Four Birds in the Star Village Arcade off the mall is ok. Caffeine Extreme has nice equipment but he wastes it on stale Lavazza or something similar.

When the markets are open, Coffee NT can make some good coffee.

I've ordered a fresh batch from Andy to keep me and my Giotto going over Christmas - I'm taking it with me!

Theirs a fantastic new coffee shop just opened up in Parap Village called "all about coffee & tea". Makes the best and more importantly most consistant coffee i've had in the NT. It gets really busy when the Parap markets are on but go any other time and you'll generally have it all to yourself.

I dropped in to coffee & tea a few weeks ago - didn't know they were selling drinks as well otherwise I would have ordered one. The lady I spoke to seemed to know about beans and other stuff but I didn't do the Spanish inquisition I think they sell Isomac? Can't remember. They had some Pullmans in store as well as a bunch of fresh beans. I'll have to go back for another visit...

yes they definitely sell drinks. a few Weeks ago they had the 2012 Australian barista champ up giving advise to customers and training staff at their shop and also finlays joint café, graig simon i think his name was. they both get their beans from Venezianocoffee.com.au my work mates and i quite often go to finlays for coffees and all agree it's pretty good Coffee.

I'll have to check out "All About Coffee and Tea"... Saw it the other day in between thinking about the crappy food I'd come across in the 24hrs of being in Darwin and trying not to think about how much I paid for it.

Does anyone know if they sell fresh beans? I was about to pull the trigger on some Espresso WOW until I saw the cost of getting it here...

Actually, to be fair, the beans aren't bad. Good crema and nicer flavour than I've tasted at non-specialty cafes, out of my Classic/Preciso. A bit bitter for my tastes and definitely not as sweet or tasty as what I've been getting with Decaf WoW/Ceja de Silva/DIY-Mocha-Java in a popper though.

Hi Dragunov, when I went in to Coffee and Tea they had some beans that were roasted within a week, but they also had some imported stuff which looked flash but you wouldn't want to trust it. The cost wasn't great, more expensive than 2kg from Andy including postage, but then I'd never get through 2kg myself in time, which is why I pay a bit more for local redistribution.

Don't bother with startrack, Aus post is just as quick as anyone else. It will be here in 2 days. I used to order 2kg at a time for work and it arrived without fail (except when the QLD floods cut the roads off). If you can find someone to share it with you (work, friend, etc) then stick with what you know and buy it from beanbay!

Theirs a fantastic new coffee shop just opened up in Parap Village called "all about coffee & tea". Makes the best and more importantly most consistant coffee i've had in the NT. It gets really busy when the Parap markets are on but go any other time and you'll generally have it all to yourself.

Have been travelling from the rock to the top over the past 2 weeks without finding 1 decent shot along the way. I won't name the organisations that have led to my pain, they need all the encouragement they can get! In Darwin now and have finally found my way to Parap's All about coffee & tea. The day i visited a flavoursome drop from Byron Bay (2 fairly different parts of the country). Not that cheap at 5 bucks a latte but then again nothing is in the never never. Suffice to say I felt like a man with a substance abuse problem having his first fix in 2 weeks. Time I had some home roasted beanbay greens.

Stopped in again at All About Coffee and Tea, grabbed some stuff there and had a chat with the owner. The coffee was really tasty and it looks like they run barista courses, so I'll report back late next month for anyone who might be interested.

There's a cafe/restaurant just next to the deck which I find decent; can't recall the name. Maybe Java-something.

Cafe 21 in the Smith St mall is what I was call good. I enjoy their short blacks and their milk is done reasonably well. Together with AACaT I'd say they're the two "good" places in Darwin.

Speaking of which, I did the barista course at All About Coffee and Tea (in Parap) and got a lot out of it. You don't get the certificate but all the information should be there and they were (at the time of writing) happy for you to come back and practise some more when the shop's quiet, which I think is really awesome.

First thing that you see on walking in is a Kees Van der Westen mirage idrocompresso 3 group lever! Flat white and espresso vastly better than anything else in Darwin, good food too. Run by a couple ex- Adelaide I think and the barista is from Melbourne. So they take the coffee seriously for sure.

There's a cafe/restaurant just next to the deck which I find decent; can't recall the name. Maybe Java-something.

By "deck" I assume you mean The Deck Bar. Nice atmosphere and fantastic laksa. The cafe next door is called Java Spice. Delicious cakes, and some great aromatics going on in there (take the wife / gf / significant other).

I went to the Pearl the other day. Maybe I had my hopes up at the sight of the lever, but I wasn't entirely impressed. The milk was a bit bubbly, the taste was a bit ... off (like the grounds were passed it, but the grinder was going while I was there). The temp was perfect. I don't know if you have to monitor these lever machines but the barista just let it run until it stopped itself. They were out of sweets by the time I visited (about 3pm). A good (not great) coffee, not worth crossing over town for but I'll probably stop in again if I'm walking by.

I'm a confessed (Sarawak) Laksa nut. Used to frequent Austins Kopi Tiam in Mt Hawthorn where I enjoyed the best I have ever tasted - sadly now gone - so I sourced ingredients and made my own paste in an effort to copy the "My Mums Laksa" from their menu and I got/get pretty close (my friends opinion not mine). Would love to find a similar Laksa house here in Perth but haven't managed it yet - any ideas?

Apparently the place on the other side of the deck bar (Cafe Del' Art I think) is pretty good with the coffee (and excellent calamari I heard) but it's a bit far for the daily walk so I'll try it out next time I'm there.

My boss just bought the Breville Oracle for work so I don't think I'll be taking many more coffee walks...

First thing that you see on walking in is a Kees Van der Westen mirage idrocompresso 3 group lever! Flat white and espresso vastly better than anything else in Darwin, good food too. Run by a couple ex- Adelaide I think and the barista is from Melbourne. So they take the coffee seriously for sure.

Guys- tried this place this morning expecting something good. Coffee was really bad. They have the right gear but the beans were not fresh. Food was really good albeit over-priced. Give it a miss!

Guys- tried this place this morning expecting something good. Coffee was really bad. They have the right gear but the beans were not fresh. Food was really good albeit over-priced. Give it a miss!

Gav,

Were you visiting darwin , and live in Sydney? Did you try and other coffee joints in Darwin?

Darwin isn't known for its nice coffee.

I offer two plausible reasons for your bad experience.

1) the coffee is actually pretty good, for Darwin. I mean, they used real beans to make it, didn't they? There are lots of worse places.

2) this time of year is the build up. It is a little bit humid. It takes its toll on coffee beans, and human beans too - no one wants to do much. People are busy leaving on holidays, leaving skeleton staff. Not as many tourists around, and less incentive to do your best.

Fair enough. I'm not trying to defend any coffee joint here or promote. But there is a prevailing attitude up here - it's not right.you get used to it. I was surprised on a recent trip to Melbourne, with quality, lower price, and cheerful attitude.